Yes, yes, I’m a bit late with the next instalment of Festivus Book Pimping, but I’m going to try and get as many authors/books pimped before I head away next week for my Christmas break.  So, next up on the Festivus altar is another overseas author, all round nice guy, and hell of a writer, James A Moore. Round of applause!

Now Jim has quite a backlist of novels and short stories, all of which you should read. But today I’m going to focus on the fantasy series I’m currently reading: The Blasted Lands, published through Angry Robot. I’d been meaning to get these books for a while, but my laziness worked in my favour, with the latest book (third in the series), just released.

The series begins with Seven Forges, and the introduction to two races of people – those from the Empire of Fellein, and the fantastical, half-forgotten, and oh-so mysterious Sa’ba Taalor. And it’s those of the Blasted Lands that really held my attention – Drask Silver Hand, Swech, Tusk and their gods (and their magic), are vastly different from anything I’d read, and I was so very taken with them. Hell, I couldn’t get enough.

Told from the viewpoints of the major characters of Captain Merros Dulver, the Emperor, Desh – the emperor’s sorcerer, and those of the Sabar Taalor, you get to experience the lives and fears, the cultures and impending war of the two races. Moore handles it masterfully, and I couldn’t wait to get into the second book.

The Blasted Lands follows up with action, betrayal, amazing magic, gods and rituals, and a final understanding of why the Sa’ba Taalor hide their faces from those outside the Blasted Lands (and damn impressive this is). War is coming. Not if, but when, and the people of Fellein… well, it ain’t looking good. As a second book, they can sometime fall flat, but Moore just amps it up, and I flew through this reading as well.

City of Wonders is next, and while I’d love to tell you more about this one, I’m only three chapters in, but I’m hooked and wondering how I can steal time so I can read more. There’s a fourth in the series that Moore is currently writing, and I’ll be first in line to buy that baby.

Oh, and a shout-out to the cover-artist of these books – they capture the characters perfectly, and are just gorgeous.

Now I can’t have you leave without telling you about one of my favourite of Moore’s characters, Jonathan Crowley. There is many a story with the dark Mr Crowley, and I’ve had the pleasure of being the editor of a couple of Crowley stories in the SNAFU series put out through Cohesion Press. Crowley is a monster hunter, and quite possibly a monster in his own right, but damn if he ain’t fun to read. Moore’s Crowley stories are more supernatural horror, and one of my favourites is the short story, Cherry Hill. Addictive, this character is, and I’m always happy with a new Crowley story.

Oh, and I’ve just finished editing a new Crowley story for SNAFU: Hunters, and it’s a cracker!

Recommendation:

For the Blasted Lands series, anyone who loves epic fantasy, dark fantasy, magic and monsters and mayhem, oh my!

For the Crowley books, anyone who loves supernatural horror, horror, dark fiction, and monsters straight from your nightmares!

Festivus out!